The present invention relates to a cleaning device for contact-type information transducing heads, such as for magnetic read or write heads, for example. In particular this invention relates to such a cleaning device which can be used without solvents or other fluids, and which collects material removed from transducing heads.
It is well known that the characteristics of contact-type transducing heads, such as read or write heads in a magnetic tape player, for example, determine the accuracy and precision with which information is read or written. Furthermore, undesired materials on the contact surface of a transducing head can greatly reduce the precision and accuracy with which the transducing head operates. For example, magnetic particles that have become dislodged from a magnetic recording medium as it runs on the contact surface of a magnetic transducing head and have adhered to the head can cause significant deterioration in the performance of the magnetic transducer head.
Various types of cleaning materials have in the past been used to clean transducing heads which have become degraded as described above. A first approach utilizes fluids to remove undesired deposits from the transducing heads chemically. A second approach utilizes a tape, such as a hard flat tape or a tape provided with a abrasive surface, which is run on the contact surface of the transducing head to remove magnetic particles attached to the head.
Although such methods may clean the head's contact surface, each presents disadvantages. For example, when fluids of the type described above are used to clean the recording or playback transducer heads of a magnetic tape player, such fluids can damage pressure rollers or other components of the tape player. Furthermore, magnetic particles removed from transducing heads by cleaning tapes of the prior art tend to fly and scatter around the head and may become deposited on guide pins, capstans, pressure rollers, idler motors, and other components. Such magnetic particles can cause undesirable noise, wow, and flutter which may degrade the performance of the tape player to an undesirable extent. In some cases, it may be necessary to overhaul a tape player at considerable cost to remove such deposits of magnetic particles from the interior of the player.